The technology group Wärtsilä and Saudi Arabia based Northern Region Cement Company (NRCC) strengthen their cooperation by signing a new three-year asset management agreement for NRCC’s power plant in Turaif, Saudi Arabia. Wärtsilä will continue to be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the power plant and to ensure the reliability and availability of its operations. This agreement, signed in October 2017, is an extension of Wärtsilä’s previous service agreements for NRCC’s power plant. The first service agreement with NRCC was signed already in 2008.

“Wärtsilä has been responsible for the operation and maintenance of our power plant already since 2008. We have been very satisfied with the quality of Wärtsilä’s service and support as well as the way they ensure safe and reliable operations. In such a challenging business environment, the partnership with Wärtsilä has helped us to become a competitive player in the market,” says Dr. Obaid Alsobiei, CEO from Northern Region Cement Company.Real-time monitoring enables continuous optimization

The agreement covers all aspects of operating and maintaining NRCC’s power plant, including the day-to-day operation of the power plant as well as preventive and predictive maintenance. The power plant’s condition is continuously remotely monitored by Wärtsilä’s Customer Centre in Dubai to create a holistic view of the plant and to provide expert technical advisory and data analysis services. These enable the making of knowledge-based, predictive decisions to ensure the plant’s reliability and efficiency.

Over the years, Wärtsilä has also carried out electrical and automation services to improve the performance and extend the lifecycle of NRCC’s power plant.

“We are proud to be able to continue our 10-year cooperation with NRCC. By having full responsibility for the operation and maintenance of NRCC’s power plant, we have been able to ensure reliable operations, optimised fuel consumption and reduced maintenance costs for NRCC. With this new agreement, we want to give them peace of mind and ensure they can focus on their core business also in the future,” says Haidar al Hertani, Managing Director, Wärtsilä Saudi Arabia.

The 62 MW power plant is equipped with nine Wärtsilä 32 engines and provides energy for NRCC’s Turaif cement factory. The factory has two cement lines, producing in total almost 10,000 tonnes of cement per day.